On the second day, we had brunch at the popular Kai Tod Decha (Bangloh) restaurant which serve one of the best Thai-style fried chicken in Hat Yai. True to its reputation, the fried chicken was really good, couple with its delicious briyani rice. The price is quite reasonable too compared to other restaurants we visited earlier. Totally would recommend this place when you’re in Hat Yai.
After that hearty breakfast, we visited Hat Yai’s premier shopping mall - the Central Festival mall. About half the size of IOI City Mall or Mid Valley Megamall, Central Festival offers your typical mall experience with a variety of modern shops, services and restaurants. I didn’t miss the chance to visit their Muji branch which seems to offer some newer listings not available in Malaysia. We did a little bit of shopping at the mall. We found this great little essential oil stall which sells a variety of essential oil, massage oil, spray-on perfumes, poutpourries, you name it. We bought some sweet-smelling lime essential oil and massage oil. The interesting about Central Festival mall is that parking is free of charge but you need to show your passport for entry and exit.
Later in the afternoon, we checked in at our second hotel at Hat Yai Signature Hotel. It was a nice hotel on the outskirts of Hat Yai with a beautiful minimalist design. Most of the staff can speak malay and you can even use ringgit as deposit. There’s swimming pool and gym within the hotel compound. The only downside is it that we were unlucky to have bed bugs (we suspect) in our room (b209. It is enough to completely ruin our stay at the hotel. In the evening, we had dinner at Ayuthaya Halal noodle. As the name suggests, we had noodle sup and I found my favourite thai beef satay/skewer on sale there. That is another affordable and delicious restaurant in Hat Yai.
Afterwards, we visited Lee Garden night market. It’s another popular market in Hat Yai but I must say not as big as ASEAN Night Bazaar and the others. There’s a variety of goods and food on sale but we just bought some snacks. On the other side of Lee Garden, we saw some drag queens promoting their shows. It would be interesting to see one some day but not then, not without incurring my wife’s wrath.
